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Why “eh” is an Interview Killer

Why “eh” is an Interview Killer

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It can be a very exciting time when you finally get the confirmation that you have been waiting for; you have been selected for an interview for a job that you really want. However, it is also a very nerve-racking time and some people can let nerves and excitement take over and get the better of them. People forget that they are going to need a lot more than enthusiasm for the role when preparing for an interview.

So many people have made the mistake of failing to prepare and instead think that their enthusiasm for the role will carry them through the interview process. Or people let their nerves lead the way and put them at a disadvantage throughout the preparation process, focusing on getting suited and booted and arriving at the interview, only to meet the interviewers and fail to answer the first question correctly.

A lot of people really tend to panic when they are asked a question that they haven’t prepared for and come out with “eh” and “um” which, let me tell you, does not and will not ever impress employers. People who make these delaying sounds like “eh”, “hmmm” or “um” often then follow them up with an answer that is not even relevant to the question being asked. This, I’m sure you can see, is likely to make you stand out for all the wrong reasons.

Of course there may be a lot of questions that you can answer, but the problem here is that you may have already ruined your chance of success due to the unprofessional way that you “ummed”, “ahhed” and said “eh” throughout many of the other questions. This would not have left the best lasting impression on an interviewer, not when they may have interviewed more than a few other people who have properly prepared and don’t “eh” their way through the interview.

You have to remember that when applying for jobs in this current climate, you are up against many more candidates than you would have been 6 years ago. This means that the calibre of candidates is likely to be a lot higher and the interviewers are going to be expecting a lot more in interviews.

So how do you avoid being the chaff amongst the wheat, the weak link?

How can you avoid this problem and stop “eh” killing your interviews?

The answer is, of course, preparation, preparation, preparation, for as the old adage goes “Fail to prepare, prepare to fail”. Therefore:

You must make every effort to learn all about the company. You must fully understand what the job requirements are and go above and beyond to showcase how you can meet those requirements. You must research and learn about the interviewers, for instance their backgrounds and thinking, which might give away their tendency to ask certain questions. LinkedIn is a useful resource for this kind of research. Prepare the standard interview questions, many of which you can find online, as well as ideas for the non-standard interview questions. It is also important to have your own questions to ask the interviewers, so make sure you have 4 or 5 prepared in advance of the interview.